IBM Encryption Facility for z/VSE

Four good reasons to use EF for z/VSE

Address the need for heightened security

The need to be able to create secure archived copies of business data is a critical security concern. Encrypting data that can be recovered at any time offers a high degree of privacy protection from unwanted access. The IBM Encryption Facility for z/VSE® (EF for z/VSE) makes use of IBM Z® crypto and compression hardware and key management based on the Keyman/VSE utility.

Gain flexibility of encrypted data exchange

EF for z/VSE is a software-based encryption facility. It uses hardware-accelerated crypto support for encryption and decryption. Encrypted data can be exchanged between different operating systems. The EF for z/VSE can read encrypted files that were created using the EF for z/OS® (Encryption Facility for z/OS) or the z/OS Java® Client. Encrypted files that were created using the EF for z/VSE can be read by the EF for z/OS, the z/OS Java Client and the z/OS Decryption Client.

Choose between two data encryption methods

Passphrase-based encryption (PBE) is the simplest method since it does not require any key-generation or key-handling. On systems without TCP/IP for z/VSE or with other TCP/IP stacks, you can only use passphrase-based encryption. Public-key encryption (PKE) requires the use of a key management tool to either generate private and public keys, or to import public keys. PKE is more secure, but is also more restrictive than passphrase-based encryption.

Take advantage of the openPGP protocol

EF for z/VSE allows the exchange encrypted data with platforms that support openPGP. OpenPGP is a standard protocol to ensure data integrity for exchanges among trusted partners. Exchange an encrypted and optionally compressed file between your internal data centers using the Encryption Facility for OpenPGP support. Exchange files with your external business partners and vendors who have an installed an OpenPGP (RFC 4880)-compliant client running on IBM z/OS, but also on workstation platforms.